Rebels Claim Damascus Bomb Attack near U.N. Hotel

A massive bomb blast rocked the heart of Damascus on Wednesday, setting off a fireball near the hotel used by the U.N. observer mission in Syria in an attack claimed by the rebel Free Syrian Army.

The blast, which tore a huge hole out of a petrol tanker near the Dama Rose hotel, wounded at least five people, a military officer at the scene said, while Syria's deputy foreign minister said U.N. staff were unscathed.

"The FSA operation targeted a military command office with explosives designed to go off at a meeting of army officers and members of the shabiha (pro-government militia) which decides on daily operations in Damascus," said Maher Nuwaimi, head of the FSA coordination command in Syria.

Damascus has been hit by several bomb blasts, including an attack last month at the national security headquarters that killed four of President Bashar Assad's top security chiefs and was also claimed by the FSA.

"There was a huge explosion and a fireball, and soldiers were thrown to the ground by the blast," the military officer told AFP at the scene.

The U.N. Supervision Mission in Syria, which uses the Dama Rose as its headquarters, was not immediately available for comment.

The U.N. Security Council is due to meet Thursday to discuss the future of the observer mission, whose mandate under a peace plan drawn up by former international envoy Kofi Annan expires on August 19.

"Our primary goal is to secure the observer mission team and thank God no one from this mission has been hurt since it arrived in Syria," Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad told reporters.

The FSA commander said the targeted military building houses a fuel depot, as well as ammunitions and weapons stores that supply troops in the capital.

"This operation aims to boost the morale of the FSA and tell Bashar Assad and his command that we can conduct carefully planned operations because we know what is happening in their ranks," he told AFP in Beirut.